Fried Rice with Egg - Meatless Monday

Last week I made fried rice with egg drop soup for Meatless Monday. It was a meal that will definitely be repeated. I was not thrilled with the egg drop soup, so I am going to wait on that recipe. However, after cooking both of them I realized what I waste of money it is to purchase it. It is super cheap to make at home. A bag of rice is $2.00, a bag of frozen peas $1.00, eggs $2.00 a dozen, chicken broth $2.00 for four cups and all of the proper seasoning. So, for $7.00 we had a great meal with leftovers. Can't beat that! Here is the recipe:

• 1 cup of fresh frozen peas, defrosted
• 3 T of peanut oil
• 1 medium onion, roughly chopped
• 1 T of minced garlic
• 1 T of minced ginger (I omitted this one)
• 3 to 4 cups of cooked rice
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/4 cup of cooking sherry or white wine
• 2 T of soy sauce
• 1 T of sesame oil
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1/4 cup of mince scallion (optional)

1. Put 1 tablespoon of the oil in a wok or large skillet over high heat. A minute later, add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until they soften and begin to brown, five to ten minutes later. Lower the heat if needed. Using a slotted spoon, take the onions out and transfer them into a bowl.

2. Add the peas to the skillet for a minute or two, or until hot. Add them to the bowl.

3. Put the remaining oil in the skillet, followed by the garlic and ginger. About 15 seconds later, begin to add the rice, a bit at at time, breaking up any clumps and tossing it with the oil. When all the rice is added, make a well in its center and add the eggs. They will begin to cook into the middle. Keep them moving and incorporate them into the rice.

4. Return the onion and the peas to the rice. Add the wine and cook, stirring for about a minute. Add the soy sauce and sesame oil, then taste and add salt and pepper.

5. Turn off the heat, stir in the scallion, and serve.

Thai Beef and Broccoli Stir Fry

There is a restaurant in Little Rock called Lilly's that we love! It serves Thai food. I have been looking to find a recipe that has that same taste and I finally found one that I really like. I also love stir-fry. No, let me rephrase that, I love one pan meals, and stir-fry fits the bill perfectly.

Ingredients:
1 lbs of beef sirloin steak, sliced into strips
3 tbsp of soy sauce mixed with 1 tsp of sugar (*key)
1 large head of broccoli, chopped into florets (or tress as my kids say)
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 onion, chopped
2 tbsp of fresh ginger, chopped
2 tbsp of sesame oil
2 tsp of oil for the wok

1. Pour the soy sauce and sugar mixture over the strips of beef. Season with black pepper and salt. Marinate for about 20 minutes.

2. Add 2 tsp of oil into a wok (or skillet) and allow time to heat. Add meat mixture, onion, and ginger to wok. Cook down until meat is medium to well done.

3. About 5 minutes before serving add broccoli to mixture, cover and allow to steam. You want to keep the bright green color of the broccoli.

4. Serve in bowl over rice (I use jasmine rice in my rice steamer, but any rice would work), drizzle with sesame oil.